Please Note: Content Warning and Resources
The theme of this exhibition contains material of a highly sensitive nature including, first-hand depictions of war and battlefield experiences, blood, amputation, suicide, and PTSD, and realistic battlefield sound elements that may be triggering for some individuals. Please take proper precautions for yourself to maintain your mental and emotional well-being. If you believe that the exhibit will be traumatizing for you, then you may choose to forgo it.
Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: Dial 988
Overview Military Medicine: Vietnam to Present
Vietnam Memorial Gallery
Robert Abrams Justice Building
2024 - March 2025
The Vietnam War marked a significant turning point in the history of military medicine. The use of medical evacuation on a large scale dramatically reduced the delay between injury and treatment and saved countless lives. Since then, healthcare in the military has rapidly advanced. Conflicts in countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan have led to new training and technology methods that have propelled combat injuries’ survivability to a rate of 92%.
This exhibition shows how the advancement of military medicine from Vietnam to the present has had a monumental impact on the lives of New Yorkers who served. It features firsthand accounts and demonstrates the bravery of those who sacrificed their own safety to save others. Most importantly, the stories highlight the humanity of individuals. Behind the military’s regimented care (where every minute counts), there is a human being with compassion. From the moment a wounded soldier cries “medic!” to the pilot transporting a patient to safety, to the nurse’s assuring handhold, to the therapist working recovery— individuals provide the most critical element in the realm of military medicine.
Military Medicine Objects
Combat Medic Sniper Attack
In this video produced in 2005, Tschiderer details his remarkable experience of a sniper attack. Tschiderer’s armor included an Outer Tactical vest with small arms protective inserts (SAPI) plates. SAPI plates are attached in the neck, groin, and chest. A small hole in the chest of the armor indicates where Tschiderer was shot by a sniper in 2005.
Property of the New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs, New York State Military Museum, on loan
Thank You
Military Medicine: Vietnam War to Present was produced by the Office of General Services Curatorial & Visitor Services Department and made possible with generous assistance and support of the following:
109th Airlift Wing, New York Air National Guard
Robert Allyn, Vice President, Tri- County Vietnam Era Veterans
Susan Birkhead, Archives Volunteer, Center for Nursing at the Foundation of NYS Nurses, Inc.
Joshua Brancheau, Clinical Director & Art Therapist, The Art Therapy Project
Major Stephen Carson, New York Army National Guard
PennyLee Deere, ARTS 4 VETS
Martha Dorn, Executive Director, The Art Therapy Project
Deborah Elliott, Executive Director, Center for Nursing at the Foundation of NYS Nurses, Inc.
Ada Johnston, New York Air National Guard Colonel (RET)
Gus Kappler, MD, Trauma Surgeon 85th Evacuation Hospital, Vietnam, 1970-1971
Dr. Melodie Krahula, Psychologist, Albany Veteran Center
Lynn Magistrale, Program Director, WNY Heroes, Inc.
Captain Tonjus Mason, U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps
Peter McShane, Author, Syracuse Veterans’ Writing Group, Syracuse University
Bob Nevins, Founding Executive and Director of Program, Alliance 180
New York State Department of Veterans’ Services
New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs
New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center
New York State Museum
Reverend Carmito Pabón
Dr. Annette Tucker Osborne, Colonel (RET), President of National Association of Black Military Women
Michael Pagano, Department of Prosthetics and Sensory Aid Services, Stratton Veterans Affairs Medical Center
William Payne, American Legion Lamouree-Hackett Post 72
Peter Potter, Director of Public Affairs, Albany Stratton VA Medical Center
Private Lender, Albany, New York
Colonel (RET) Christine Rem, Executive Director, Capital District Women Veterans Program, Inc.
Eileen Schell, Instructor, Syracuse Veterans’ Writing Group, Syracuse University
Lance Stenfeldt, Clear Path for Veterans, Inc., U.S. Army (RET)
SFC Steve Tschiderer
U.S. Army, Fort Drum, New York